Aristotle's Ideal State: Hierarchy And Equality

In this essay I will examine Aristotle’s ideal state in order to find out whether it is rather a place of hierarchy than equality. First it is necessary to define what is meant by hierarchy and equality. This seems to be an easy task, since these are commonly used words. But by equality, do we mean for example equal property, equal power or equal rights for everyone? For 21st century Sweden, for example, is usually thought to be rather equal state, while it is however true that even there everyone doesn’t have equal property, equal power or even equal rights. And would equal property for everyone even be equality, since then those who work harder would get the same benefits than those who work less and therefore there would be unfair inequality

a god), is not a part of the state at all.’ (1253a18) By this definition Aristotle’s ideal state becomes more equal. However, we cannot say that a state is a place of equality by leaving a part of its population outside the definition of a state. Even contemporary states would be seen much more equal if we left women or homosexuals, for example, outside the definition. But that is only a way to modify truth. Furthermore, Aristotle makes an assumption that women are ’incapable of participating in the association which we call the state’, which is clearly a fallacy as we can demonstrate by looking at all the succesfull women participating in politics in modern times. Therefore he creates a state that is unnaturally hierarchical and unequal. For if it was that women in fact are by nature inferior to men, it would be justified to call a state that excludes them from public life equal, since it is rational that not everyone is good at same things and not everyone should do the same jobs. As Aristotle puts it, ‘you cannot make a state out of men who are all alike.’(1261a22) But by differentiating people based on their gender and not even allowing the best of the women to participate in politics, Aristotle creates an unnatural gender

If we, however, take a closer look at his ideal state of free men without taking into account unequal positions of women, slaves and non-Greeks, we will still see that his state is quite hierarchical. However, there are many aspects of equality in there,